tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-109939842024-03-23T12:33:59.496-06:00Clutter2CashYou are already rich.Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07099173870125319819noreply@blogger.comBlogger230125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10993984.post-27191834558422087202011-04-17T20:08:00.000-06:002011-04-17T20:08:04.300-06:00Are You Stuck in Fear at Tax Time? Here are some tips...Taxes have never freaked me out before. But this year was different. I noticed a lot more fear, both in and around me. The good news about fear is that we don't have to let it stop us...we can be afraid and do something anyway. Like file...and pay...our taxes :) Your fear is real, but you don't have to let it paralyze you.<br />
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It's important that you file on time each year. Even if you need more time, you can easily file for a six month extension. If you can't pay what you owe, there are options...but fewer if you haven't filed on time for the previous five years.<br />
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<h3>1) File on time</h3>This year the filing deadline is midnight on April 18th, 2011. It's pretty easy these days to complete basic taxes quickly with <a href="http://www.irs.gov/efile/article/0,,id=118986,00.html">online tools</a>, but if you need more time...you can still file an extension.<br />
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<h3>2) Need more time?</h3>File for a six-month extension...for FREE...by midnight on April 18th. Jonathan over at MyMoneyBlog wrote a post on <a href="http://www.mymoneyblog.com/how-to-e-file-your-federal-tax-extension-online-for-free.html">two ways to freely file for an extension online</a>. I was going to follow his recommendation to use TaxAct to file for an extension this year, but I ended up filing anyway. An extension gives you up to six more months to file your taxes. Online tools can help you estimate your taxes, and if you think you owe, it's best to pay when you file your extension, or you may accrue penalties and fees. There are <a href="http://www.articlesbase.com/stress-management-articles/5-good-reasons-to-file-an-income-tax-extension-384797.html">many reasons why you might want to file for an extension</a>, just know the IRS doesn't really care why. It's easy. And it's free. So if you are freaking out about time, do it and relax a little.<br />
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<h3>3) Not sure how to do your taxes? Forms look daunting?</h3>Use <a href="http://www.irs.gov/efile/article/0,,id=118986,00.html">online tax filing services</a>. Though everyone can technically find some way to prepare and e-file for free, the most helpful services limit who can use their free versions. I've happily used TurboTax and TaxAct and they make taxes easy with their Q&A style. I just wish I had seen the <a href="http://apps.irs.gov/app/freeFile/jsp/index.jsp?ck">IRS "free version" links</a> before paying for TaxAct this year, but even so, it was only $17.95 for Federal & State. If you have a few hundred bucks and complicated taxes, it might be a great idea to hire a professional for peace of mind. They'll be less busy after the filing deadline (don't forget to file for an extension!)<br />
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<h3>4) Owe taxes, and can't pay?</h3>Assuming you can't borrow or use your credit (which would probably be cheaper), if you qualify, an <a href="http://taxes.about.com/od/taxdebts/qt/irs-installment-agreements.htm">installment agreement</a> is the easiest way to pay off your tax debt. There's also a <a href="http://taxes.about.com/od/taxdebts/ht/Partial_Pay_IA.htm">partial payment installment agreement</a>, where some of the debt is forgiven. If these don't apply, there are still <a href="http://taxes.about.com/od/taxdebts/a/tax_debt.htm">other options</a>. I'm no expert, I'm just trying to point out that you will be able to face and deal with whatever your situation is and you probably aren't going to jail. You have options. Now breathe.<br />
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<h3>5) Fear *still* have you stuck?</h3>You can have more time, use software to walk you through the entire process, and even if you can't pay what you owe right now, you have options. Still stuck? Find a "Tax Buddy". Whether it's someone who will cheer each step of your progress or sit down with you and keep you company while you face down your tax fear...find a way to get help from someone you like and trust. Or maybe you are afraid of what you don't know? Afraid of what you *may* owe? Afraid of the consequences of past mistakes? I'll be that it's easier to *know* what your situation is, and face it...than to stay afraid of what may be.<br />
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I emptied my retirement savings to pay living expenses this past year and didn't withold enough to cover the penalty. I was terrified to do my taxes this year and kept putting it off. I owe the IRS over $4000 and I can't pay that right now. But I took the time to research my options and now I no longer have fear of the unknown. I know what I owe, I submitted paperwork for an installment plan, and I'm waiting for the IRS to send me a bill. And I released a lot of energy that was all tied up in worry and avoidance. Whew.<br />
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<b>What do you fear the most during tax time? How do you handle it?</b>Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07099173870125319819noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10993984.post-36487918043196491322011-04-16T00:00:00.071-06:002011-04-17T17:23:48.568-06:00Casual reCommerce Series: "Virtual Yard Sale" Mini-Review<i>Welcome to Casual reCommerce, a series of posts on selling your stuff online. I've previously posted an <a href="http://clutter2cash.blogspot.com/2011/04/casual-recommerce-series-introduction.html#more">Introduction to Selling your Stuff Online</a> and each day this past week, a little more detail about <a href="http://clutter2cash.blogspot.com/2011/04/casual-recommerce-series-ebay-mini.html">eBay</a>, <a href="http://clutter2cash.blogspot.com/2011/04/casual-recommerce-series-amazon-seller.html">Amazon Seller Services</a>, <a href="http://clutter2cash.blogspot.com/2011/04/casual-recommerce-series-abundatrade.html">AbundaTrade</a>, <a href="http://clutter2cash.blogspot.com/2011/04/casual-recommerce-series-craigslist.html">craigslist</a>. Today I'm posting a mini-review of a "virtual" or "online" yard sale, the last of the mini-reviews.</i><br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/rainchurch/3316287385/" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Artsy yard sale sign by /\ \/\/ /\, on Flickr"><img alt="Artsy yard sale sign" height="180" src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3610/3316287385_d1c9cf5d99_m.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">Photo by /\ \/\/ /\, some rights reserved</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><h3>Virtual/Online Yard Sale</h3>Not really a service per se, a "virtual" or "online" yard sale is the concept of using free online tools and technology to promote and facilitate selling your stuff out of your house like an old school yard or garage sale. People still come to your house either by appointment or during a scheduled time like a regular yard sale and (hopefully) give you cash for your stuff. You use web-publishing tools (such as Blogger, Wordpress, Tumblr, etc) to have your "inventory" visible online. You also promote your sale using flyers on bulletin boards, craigslist posts, and by letting your social network know (via Twitter, Facebook, etc). No yard necessary!<br />
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<h3>Fees/Cost: <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">Low</span></h3><br />
<ul><li>Whatever you want or need to spend on yard sale promotion supplies (like printing flyers, posters, etc)</li>
</ul><br />
<h3>Complexity: <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: red;">High</span></h3><br />
<ul><li>Requires decent photos</li>
<li>Must have some comfort with "publishing" on the web</li>
<li>Flyer creation and distribution</li>
<li>Finding and using free community advertising tools (classifieds, bulletin boards, etc)</li>
<li>You need to be cool with folks coming to your house (by appointment, or during certain hours)</li>
</ul><br />
<h3>Reliability/Feedback: <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: orange;">Medium</span></h3><br />
<ul><li>Fewer "lowball" offers than other in-person or Craigslist-only selling methods</li>
<li>Cash in hand without fees</li>
<li>Due to it's dependence on Craigslist for visibility, you may encounter some "CL Flakiness"</li>
</ul><br />
<h3>Shipping: <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">Variable</span></h3><br />
<ul><li>None if you do local pickup only...Or offer shipping on your terms</li>
<li>Easy to use the online shipping tools of UPS, USPS and FedEx if you weigh your packages and type in the addresses</li>
</ul><br />
<h3><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">Pros...</span></h3><br />
<ul><li>Free</li>
<li>Go at your own pace</li>
<li>Don't need a yard or a garage or even a stoop</li>
</ul><br />
<h3><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: red;">Cons..</span>.</h3><br />
<ul><li>Limited audience</li>
<li>Success tied to popularity/usage of Craigslist, your social network and flyer visibility.</li>
</ul><br />
<h3>Best for...</h3><br />
<ul><li>Folks comfortable with technology & blogging tools</li>
<li>Free community-based selling of clothing, household items, furniture & books</li>
<li>Turning a large household de-cluttering project into cash....over time or quickly with a "physical world" component</li>
<li>College towns</li>
</ul><div><br />
</div><div>See how I compare "virtual yard sales" to my other favorite selling methods in the series <a href="http://clutter2cash.blogspot.com/2011/04/casual-recommerce-series-introduction.html">Introduction</a>. I've had some successes and enjoyment doing it this way, but it felt too time intensive for a small town like Santa Fe.</div><div><br />
</div><div><b>What do you think? Have you tried having a virtual yard sale? What did you like most about it?</b></div><div><br />
</div>Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07099173870125319819noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10993984.post-43866341057030124022011-04-15T00:00:00.054-06:002011-04-15T00:00:12.959-06:00Casual reCommerce Series: Craigslist Mini-Review<i>Welcome to Casual reCommerce, a series of posts on selling your stuff online. I've previously posted an Introduction to Selling your Stuff Online and each day this week, I'll cover each method in a little more detail. I've already written about <a href="http://clutter2cash.blogspot.com/2011/04/casual-recommerce-series-ebay-mini.html" style="color: #3366cc; font-weight: bold;">eBay</a>, <a href="http://clutter2cash.blogspot.com/2011/04/casual-recommerce-series-amazon-seller.html">Amazon.com's Seller Services</a>, and <a href="http://clutter2cash.blogspot.com/2011/04/casual-recommerce-series-abundatrade.html">AbundaTrade</a>. Today's post is on Craigslist.</i><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c6/Craigslist.svg/200px-Craigslist.svg.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c6/Craigslist.svg/200px-Craigslist.svg.png" /></a></div><a href="http://craigslist.org/" style="color: #cc6411; text-decoration: none;">Craigslist.org</a> has a traffic rank of #10 in the US according to Alexa. It's free and easy to use to buy and sell (and rent, trade, advertise & hire....) and has become so popular I've heard it used as a verb (as in "I'm going to craigslist that old bookcase sometime next week"). While hugely popular, especially in Los Angeles/San Francisco/New York/Seattle, its actual traffic and usefulness is mostly tied to your local community for selling. Its <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Craigslist#Background" style="color: #cc6411; text-decoration: none;">humble beginnings as a community service</a> still show through as the business model is focused on covering costs, not generating increasing profits. So you'll see a few fees, but they won't apply if you're just selling your stuff. There is a very "hands-off" approach so you won't have help if you need it (even if you encounter a problem or a software glitch) and this can feel a little chaotic or Wild West for some folks. Did I mention it's free?<br />
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<h3>Fees/Cost: <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">None</span></h3><br />
<ul><li>It's really just a big online community bulletin board.</li>
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<h3>Complexity: <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: orange;">Low to Medium</span></h3><br />
<ul><li>Easy to post something for sale</li>
<li>Taking & posting pictures and doing pricing and item research are your choice.</li>
<li>Not very technically complex, but can take some effort to protect yourself from scams and to deal with buyer troubles.</li>
<li>No technical help whatsoever</li>
</ul><br />
<h3>Reliability/Feedback: <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">Low</span></h3><br />
<ul><li>No feedback system & no consequences for bad buying etiquette can result in no shows, emails left unanswered, people showing up with less money in their wallet than the price of your item, and spam/phishy emails. </li>
<li>When it works, you receive cash in hand for your item...free of fees.</li>
</ul><br />
<h3>Shipping: <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">None</span></h3><br />
<ul><li>Unless you want to sell beyond your community and offer it.</li>
</ul><br />
<h3><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">Pros...</span></h3><br />
<ul><li>Free</li>
<li>Easy</li>
<li>No shipping necessary</li>
<li>High traffic in bigger cities.</li>
</ul><br />
<h3><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: red;">Cons...</span></h3><br />
<ul><li>Lower traffic in smaller cities</li>
<li>Buyer "flakiness" often results in wasted time</li>
<li>Spam, phishing, & scam activity</li>
<li>Your city may not have one</li>
<li>Harder to set price based on local economy's sense of value</li>
<li>May produce a lot of "lowball" offers.</li>
</ul><br />
<h3>Best for...</h3><br />
<ul><li>Retaining all profit</li>
<li>Selling larger or heavier items, like furniture, locally</li>
<li>Selling locally in larger cities, college towns or smaller cities with a lot of Craigslist activity.</li>
</ul><br />
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See how craigslist compares to my other favorite selling methods in the series <a href="http://clutter2cash.blogspot.com/2011/04/casual-recommerce-series-introduction.html#more">Introduction</a>. Tomorrow I post on a "virtual yard sale" which can raise your success with craigslist with some geekified effort.<br />
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<b>What do you think? Have you used craigslist? What do you think it's best for?</b>Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07099173870125319819noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10993984.post-6405237126913671432011-04-14T00:00:00.069-06:002011-04-14T00:00:03.996-06:00Casual reCommerce Series: AbundaTrade Mini-Review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><i>Welcome to Casual reCommerce, a series of posts on selling your stuff online. I've previously posted an <a href="http://clutter2cash.blogspot.com/2011/04/casual-recommerce-series-introduction.html" style="color: #3366cc; font-weight: bold;">Introduction to Selling your Stuff Online</a> and each day this week, I'll cover each method in a little more detail. I've already covered <a href="http://clutter2cash.blogspot.com/2011/04/casual-recommerce-series-ebay-mini.html">eBay</a> and <a href="http://clutter2cash.blogspot.com/2011/04/casual-recommerce-series-amazon-seller.html">Amazon.com's Seller Services</a>, and today I talk about a way to trade your stuff for cash with AbundaTrade.</i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><i><br />
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<a href="http://abundatrade.com/" style="color: #cc6411; text-decoration: none;">AbundaTrade.com</a> <a href="http://www.abundatrade.com/history" style="color: #cc6411; text-decoration: none;">evolved out of a music retailer's CD trade-in program</a> and is now a<a href="http://www.abundatrade.com/abundatrade-recommerce-definition.php" style="color: #cc6411; text-decoration: none;">reCommerce</a> pioneer. Their site says "Get the most cash for your CDs, DVDs, Video Games & Books". Unlike other <a href="http://swap.com/" style="color: #cc6411; text-decoration: none;">trading sites</a>, which facilitate individual direct or indirect trades of items on have & want lists, or<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html/ref=hp_left_ac?ie=UTF8&nodeId=200302910" style="color: #cc6411; text-decoration: none;">Amazon's trade-in program</a> which pays you in Amazon Gift Cards, AbundaTrade will buy your stuff for <a href="http://www.abundatrade.com/cash" style="color: #cc6411; text-decoration: none;">cash</a>. You can also choose to receive 25% more value by choosing store credit and buying from the <a href="http://www.shop.abundatrade.com/" style="color: #cc6411; text-decoration: none;">Abunda Store</a> where they sell inventory. They also offer payment by <a href="http://www.abundatrade.com/giftcards" style="color: #cc6411; text-decoration: none;">gift cards</a>. If you want to skip cash altogether, they also offer an option to "Trade for it!" and <a href="http://www.abundatrade.com/request-trade-item" style="color: #cc6411; text-decoration: none;">request an item</a> in trade such as an iPod (or an air conditioner!). You can also use it as a <a href="http://www.abundatrade.com/fundraiser" style="color: #cc6411; text-decoration: none;">fundraiser</a>. Lots of options for turning your "clutter to cash"!<br />
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<h3>Fees/Cost: <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">None to Low</span></h3><ul><li>Pay to ship items to AbundaTrade. However...</li>
<li>FREE shipping if your items pre-value at $50 total or more and you aren't shipping books</li>
<li>PayPal fees if you choose that method of payment.</li>
</ul><h3>Complexity: <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">Low</span></h3><ul><li>Turn lots of used CDs/DVDs/Videogames/Books into cash in one transaction</li>
<li>No picture taking</li>
<li>Use their web form to estimate the total value of your items, weed out what they won't accept, package and ship it to them (for free if you total over $50 and aren't shipping books)</li>
<li>Receive payment after they receive shipment...many payment methods to choose from, including cash via PayPal or check (they offer higher value if you choose to "trade").</li>
</ul><h3>Reliability/Feedback: <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">High</span></h3><ul><li>You deal directly with AbundaTrade</li>
<li>They are fast, responsive and flexible</li>
<li>You know upfront what they will buy and for how much.</li>
</ul><h3>Shipping: <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: orange;">Medium</span></h3><ul><li>Easy if shipping a few items, just pack and ship</li>
<li>Complexity rises with amount of items to ship with sorting and double-checking</li>
<li>Free shipping option requires a manual email to them with box weights + printing of pre-paid labels</li>
<li>No shipping automation.</li>
</ul><h3><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">Pros...</span></h3><ul><li>Easy</li>
<li>Fast</li>
<li>Minimal time investment</li>
<li>Decent profit per item with low effort</li>
<li>Can be done in one large transaction.</li>
</ul><h3><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: red;">Cons...</span></h3><ul><li>Can be tedious to sort and pack a large collection</li>
<li>Minor usability quirks</li>
<li>If you opt for the UPC scanner to enter a large collection, you have to buy it (vs. return for deposit refund)</li>
</ul><h3>Best for...</h3><ul><li>Quickly turning a larger amount of CDs, DVDs & Videogames into cash.</li>
</ul><br />
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See how AbundaTrade stacks up to the competition in the series <a href="http://clutter2cash.blogspot.com/2011/04/casual-recommerce-series-introduction.html#more" style="color: #3366cc; font-weight: bold;">Introduction</a>. I sent close to a total of 200 CDs, DVDs, and Videogames to AbundaTrade and received about $250, which is about $1.25 per item on average (mostly for CDs from the 90s). The win for me was the amount of time it took to use AbundaTrade, pack it all up and ship it, versus trying to sell each item on eBay or Amazon and ship each individually...no thanks!<br />
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<b>What do you think? Have you used AbundaTrade.com's services? If so, what do you think they are best at?</b>Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07099173870125319819noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10993984.post-3340167742563322602011-04-13T00:00:00.002-06:002011-04-13T00:00:03.710-06:00Casual reCommerce Series: Amazon Seller Mini-Review<i>Welcome to Casual reCommerce, a series of posts on selling your stuff online. I've previously posted an <a href="http://clutter2cash.blogspot.com/2011/04/casual-recommerce-series-introduction.html" style="color: #3366cc; font-weight: bold;">Introduction to Selling your Stuff Online</a> and each day this week, I'll cover each method in a little more detail. On Monday, <a href="http://clutter2cash.blogspot.com/2011/04/casual-recommerce-series-ebay-mini.html">I reviewed eBay</a> and below I talk about Amazon.com's Seller services.</i><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/62/Amazon.com-Logo.svg/200px-Amazon.com-Logo.svg.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="40" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/62/Amazon.com-Logo.svg/200px-Amazon.com-Logo.svg.png" width="200" /></a></div><a href="http://alexa.com/" style="color: #ff6600; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline;">Alexa</a> ranks <a href="http://amazon.com/" style="color: #3366cc; font-weight: bold;">Amazon.com</a> as the <a href="http://www.alexa.com/topsites/category/Top/Shopping" style="color: #3366cc; font-weight: bold;">#1 Top Shopping Site</a>, and <a href="http://www.alexa.com/topsites/countries/US" style="color: #3366cc; font-weight: bold;">#5 Top Site in the US</a> (#16 worldwide). This may be the number one site you think of when buying online, but many people do not know how easy it is to sell using <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/seller/sell-your-stuff.html" style="color: #3366cc; font-weight: bold;">Amazon's seller services</a>. All sellers appear on the same product page so it's very easy to add an entry (you only need a more detailed description of *your* item and your price) and to research and set your price.<br />
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<h3>Fees/Cost: <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: orange;">Medium</span></h3><ul><li>$.99 + commission fee when items sells </li>
<li>Free to process payment and transfer it to your bank account.</li>
</ul><h3>Complexity: <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">Low</span></h3><ul><li>Probably the simplest of my favorites</li>
<li>Look up your item on Amazon, click a button that says "Sell your here", add a sentence or two to describe the condition of your item and set your price</li>
<li>No picture taking</li>
<li>Sellers all "share" a single product page.</li>
</ul><h3>Reliability/Feedback: <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">High</span></h3><ul><li>Buyer pays Amazon before you get notified of sale</li>
<li>Amazon's A-Z Guarantee protects buyers from misrepresented items</li>
<li>Amazon buyers often willing to pay a premium for mutual reliability and smooth easy transaction.</li>
</ul><h3>Shipping: <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: orange;">Medium</span></h3><ul><li>USPS shipping option integrated via Stamps.com. </li>
<li>Easiest to price shipping options, print labels, and pay online if you use USPS</li>
<li>Amazon Shipping Credit may not cover your shipping cost...so do your research BEFORE choosing a price to make sure you don't lose money.</li>
</ul><h3><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">Pros...</span></h3><ul><li>Highest Traffic</li>
<li>Easy Peasy</li>
<li>Huge inventory...sell just about anything with a UPC, ISBN, and more</li>
<li>Buyers pay more</li>
<li>Easy to stay the lowest price</li>
<li>Always get paid for sales...get your money fast and often</li>
<li>Easy to research pricing.</li>
</ul><h3><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: red;">Cons...</span></h3><ul><li>Cost</li>
<li>Flat shipping credit may eat into or erase profit. </li>
<li> "Pro" account sellers can undercut your prices especially on books</li>
<li>With a basic Seller account, if your item isn't in the database, you can't sell it here.</li>
</ul><h3>Best for...</h3><ul><li>Casual selling with little investment of time or effort</li>
<li>Newer and "Like New" items, especially electronics, tend to sell easily</li>
<li>Recently released, or in demand, CDs/DVDs/Videogames.</li>
</ul><br />
<br />
See how Amazon's Seller Services stack up to the competition in the series <a href="http://clutter2cash.blogspot.com/2011/04/casual-recommerce-series-introduction.html#more">Introduction</a>. If people are paying over $5 for my item on Amazon and it's not heavy (aka "I won't lose money on shipping") then it's my favorite way of selling because it's so easy.<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>What do you think? Have you used Amazon's Seller Services? What do you think they are "best at"?</b>Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07099173870125319819noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10993984.post-90081281495128772632011-04-12T00:00:00.005-06:002011-04-12T17:09:07.634-06:00Casual reCommerce Series: eBay Mini-Review<i>Welcome to Casual reCommerce, a series of posts on selling your stuff online. I've previously posted an <a href="http://clutter2cash.blogspot.com/2011/04/casual-recommerce-series-introduction.html">Introduction to Selling your Stuff Online</a> and each day this week, I'll cover each method in a little more detail.</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://ebay.com/" style="clear: left; color: #ff9700; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-decoration: underline;"><img border="0" height="83" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/EBay_Logo.svg/200px-EBay_Logo.svg.png" style="-webkit-box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.0976562) 1px 1px 5px; background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; border-bottom-color: rgb(238, 238, 238); border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-width: 1px; border-color: initial; border-left-color: rgb(238, 238, 238); border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 1px; border-right-color: rgb(238, 238, 238); border-right-style: solid; border-right-width: 1px; border-top-color: rgb(238, 238, 238); border-top-style: solid; border-top-width: 1px; border-width: initial; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.0976562) 1px 1px 5px; padding-bottom: 5px; padding-left: 5px; padding-right: 5px; padding-top: 5px; position: relative;" width="200" /></a></div><a href="http://ebay.com/">eBay.com</a> is usually the number one site that comes to mind when you think of selling your things online. Primarily known for online auctions, eBay also offers fixed price and "Best Offer" pricing formats. You create a listing for each item you want to sell and choose a format. With auctions, you set a an opening bid and bidders compete and at the end of the auction the highest bidder wins. With "Buy it Now" you set a fixed price for your item and you can add a "Best Offer" option which allows you to accept offers lower than your set price.<br />
<br />
Below are details on my opinion of how eBay stacks up on Fees, Complexity, Reliability, and Shipping ease. I've included pros and cons of using eBay and what I think they're best at:<br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<h3>Fees/Cost: <span style="color: red;">High </span></h3><ul><li>Required tiered Listing Fee</li>
<li>Tiered Final Value Fee (aka commission)</li>
<li>Payment processing fee</li>
<li>Optional micro "upgrade" fees to enhance your listing. </li>
<li>Shipping cost</li>
</ul><h3>Complexity: <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: red;">High</span></h3><ul><li>Complex listing form</li>
<li>Picture taking (highly recommended)</li>
<li>Shipping research (highly recommended)</li>
<li>Item & pricing research (highly recommended)</li>
</ul><h3>Reliability/Feedback: <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: orange;">Medium</span></h3><ul><li>Buyers *and* Sellers leave feedback</li>
<li>Feedback system and electronic payments result in high rate of successful transactions (though sometimes payments take a few days or buyers don't pay)</li>
</ul><h3>Shipping: <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">Easy</span></h3><ul><li>USPS and UPS shipping options well integrated when using PayPal</li>
<li>Easy to price options, print shipping labels, and pay online.</li>
</ul><h3><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">Pros...</span></h3><ul><li>High traffic</li>
<li>Find buyers for harder to sell and non-working items</li>
<li>Mutual feedback system results in highly reliable transactions</li>
<li>"Best Offer" format allows price flexibility</li>
</ul><h3><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: red;">Cons...</span></h3><ul><li>Cost</li>
<li>Time consuming compared to other methods</li>
<li>Complex form to get your item listed</li>
<li>PowerSellers drive down prices on common items.</li>
</ul><h3>Best for...</h3><ul><li>Niche selling</li>
<li>Taking the time to sell anything collectible of reasonable value</li>
<li>If you have the time and need the cash it's also great for selling electronics that no longer work or parts (ex. iPods and computers).</li>
</ul><div><br />
</div>See how eBay stacks up to my other favorite methods in the <a href="http://clutter2cash.blogspot.com/2011/04/casual-recommerce-series-introduction.html#more">Introduction</a>.<br />
<div><br />
<ul></ul><div><b>What do you think? Have you used eBay? What do you think they are "best at"?</b></div><div><br />
</div></div>Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07099173870125319819noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10993984.post-75298698526227153842011-04-11T17:24:00.000-06:002011-04-11T17:24:45.840-06:00Casual reCommerce Series: Introduction to Selling Your Stuff Online<i>Welcome to Casual reCommerce, a series of posts on selling your stuff online. Below is an overview of my favorite five methods of selling used and previously purchased items online. Each day this week, I'll cover each method in a little more detail.</i><br />
<br />
<div class="p1">Used to be that when you had extra stuff and wanted to sell it you'd buy an ad in your newspaper classifieds or hold a yard sale on a sunny Saturday. These were, and still can be, effective methods of turning your "clutter to cash" but the internet continues to provide more ways to sell your stuff and to more people. What the internet does best is connect people, and this is highly useful when you want to sell something. Connecting more buyers and sellers, facilitating payment and shipping, and establishing trust outside of local communities are what these services deliver above the familiar "offline" methods.</div><br />
<div class="p1">There are a lot of choices out there and I've chosen to focus on my top five favorites. Each one has pros and cons and solves specific needs. Below is a brief summary of each of my five favorites and a table comparing them. This week I'll post a more detailed review each day explaining my ratings. "How To" posts are also in the works, so stay tuned to the series!<br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
</div><br />
<div class="p1"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://ebay.com/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="83" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/EBay_Logo.svg/200px-EBay_Logo.svg.png" width="200" /></a></div></div><div class="p2"><a href="http://ebay.com/">eBay.com</a> is usually the number one site that comes to mind when you think of selling your things online. Primarily known for online auctions, eBay also offers fixed price and <a href="http://pages.ebay.com/help/sell/best-offer.html#work">"Best Offer"</a> pricing formats. You create a listing for each item you want to sell and choose a format. With auctions, you set a an opening bid and bidders compete and at the end of the auction the highest bidder wins. With "Buy it Now" you set a fixed price for your item and you can add a "Best Offer" option which allows you to accept offers lower than your set price.<br />
<br />
</div><div class="p1"><br />
</div><div class="p2"><br />
</div><div class="p1"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://amazon.com/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="40" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/62/Amazon.com-Logo.svg/200px-Amazon.com-Logo.svg.png" width="200" /></a></div><a href="http://alexa.com/">Alexa</a> ranks <a href="http://amazon.com/">Amazon.com</a> as the <a href="http://www.alexa.com/topsites/category/Top/Shopping">#1 Top Shopping Site</a>, and <a href="http://www.alexa.com/topsites/countries/US">#5 Top Site in the US</a> (#16 worldwide). This may be the number one site you think of when buying online, but many people do not know how easy it is to sell using <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/seller/sell-your-stuff.html">Amazon's seller services</a>. All sellers appear on the same product page so it's very easy to add an entry (you only need a more detailed description of *your* item and your price) and to research and set your price.<br />
<br />
</div><div class="p2"><br />
</div><div class="p1"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://abundatrade.com/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="51" src="http://www.abundatrade.com/images/logoheader_small.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><a href="http://abundatrade.com/">AbundaTrade.com</a> <a href="http://www.abundatrade.com/history">evolved out of a music retailer's CD trade-in program</a> and is now a <a href="http://www.abundatrade.com/abundatrade-recommerce-definition.php">reCommerce</a> pioneer. Their site says "Get the most cash for your CDs, DVDs, Video Games & Books". Unlike other <a href="http://swap.com/">trading sites</a>, which facilitate individual direct or indirect trades of items on have & want lists, or <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html/ref=hp_left_ac?ie=UTF8&nodeId=200302910">Amazon's trade-in program</a> which pays you in Amazon Gift Cards, AbundaTrade will buy your stuff for <a href="http://www.abundatrade.com/cash">cash</a>. You can also choose to receive 25% more value by choosing store credit and buying from the <a href="http://www.shop.abundatrade.com/">Abunda Store</a> where they sell inventory. They also offer payment by <a href="http://www.abundatrade.com/giftcards">gift cards</a>. If you want to skip cash altogether, they also offer an option to "Trade for it!" and <a href="http://www.abundatrade.com/request-trade-item">request an item</a> in trade such as an iPod (or an air conditioner!). You can also use it as a <a href="http://www.abundatrade.com/fundraiser">fundraiser</a>. Lots of options for turning your "clutter to cash".<br />
<br />
</div><div class="p2"><br />
</div><div class="p1"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c6/Craigslist.svg/200px-Craigslist.svg.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c6/Craigslist.svg/200px-Craigslist.svg.png" /></a></div><a href="http://craigslist.org/">Craigslist.org</a> has a traffic rank of #10 in the US according to Alexa. It's free and easy to use to buy and sell (and rent, trade, advertise & hire....) and has become so popular I've heard it used as a verb (as in "I'm going to craigslist that old bookcase sometime next week"). While hugely popular, especially in Los Angeles/San Francisco/New York/Seattle, its actual traffic and usefulness is mostly tied to your local community for selling. Its <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Craigslist#Background">humble beginnings as a community service</a> still show through as the business model is focused on covering costs, not generating increasing profits. So you'll see a few fees, but they won't apply if you're just selling your stuff. There is a very "hands-off" approach so you won't have help if you need it (even if you encounter a problem or a software glitch) and this can feel a little chaotic or Wild West for some folks. Did I mention it's free?</div><div class="p2"><br />
</div><div class="p1"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">"Virtual Yard Sale"</span></div><div class="p1">Not really a service per se, a "virtual" or "online" yard sale is the concept of using free online tools and technology to promote and facilitate selling your stuff out of your house like an old school yard or garage sale. People still come to your house either by appointment or during a scheduled time like a regular yard sale and (hopefully) give you cash for your stuff. You use web-publishing tools (such as Blogger, Wordpress, Tumblr, etc) to have your "inventory" visible online. You also promote your sale using flyers on bulletin boards, craigslist posts, and by letting your social network know (via Twitter, Facebook, etc). No yard necessary.</div><div class="p2"><br />
</div><div class="p2"><br />
</div><div class="p2"><br />
</div><table border="1" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="0" class="t1" style="border: 1px solid #cc6513; width: 480px;"><tbody>
<tr style="background-color: #cc6513; border: thin; color: white; font-size: 95%; font-weight: bold; padding-left: 3px;"> <td class="td1" valign="top"></td> <td class="td2" valign="top"><div class="p4">Cost</div></td> <td class="td3" valign="top"><div class="p4">Complexity</div></td> <td class="td4" valign="top"><div class="p4">Reliability</div></td> <td class="td5" valign="top"><div class="p4">Shipping</div></td> <td class="td6" valign="top"><div class="p4">Best for...</div></td> </tr>
<tr style="background-color: #f8dc9a;"> <td class="td1" valign="top"><div class="p4">eBay</div></td> <td class="td2" valign="top"><div class="p4">High</div></td> <td class="td3" valign="top"><div class="p4">High</div></td> <td class="td4" valign="top"><div class="p4">Medium</div></td> <td class="td5" valign="top"><div class="p4">Easy</div></td> <td class="td6" valign="top"><div class="p4">Niche selling. Taking the time to sell anything collectible of reasonable value. If you have the time and need the cash it's also great for selling electronics that no longer work or parts (ex. iPods and computers).</div></td> </tr>
<tr style="background-color: #d58240; color: white;"> <td class="td1" valign="top"><div class="p4">Amazon</div></td> <td class="td2" valign="top"><div class="p4">Medium</div></td> <td class="td3" valign="top"><div class="p4">Low</div></td> <td class="td4" valign="top"><div class="p4">High</div></td> <td class="td5" valign="top"><div class="p4">Medium</div></td> <td class="td6" valign="top"><div class="p4">Casual selling with little investment of time or effort. Newer and "Like New" items, especially electronics, tend to sell easily. Recently released, or in demand, CDs/DVDs/Videogames.</div></td> </tr>
<tr style="background-color: #f8dc9a;"> <td class="td1" valign="top"><div class="p4">AbundaTrade</div></td> <td class="td2" valign="top"><div class="p4">None to Low</div></td> <td class="td3" valign="top"><div class="p4">Low</div></td> <td class="td4" valign="top"><div class="p4">High</div></td> <td class="td5" valign="top"><div class="p4">Medium</div></td> <td class="td6" valign="top"><div class="p4">Quickly turning a larger amount of CDs, DVDs & Videogames into cash.</div></td> </tr>
<tr style="background-color: #d58240; color: white;"> <td class="td1" valign="top"><div class="p4">Craigslist</div></td> <td class="td2" valign="top"><div class="p4">None</div></td> <td class="td3" valign="top"><div class="p4">Medium</div></td> <td class="td4" valign="top"><div class="p4">Low</div></td> <td class="td5" valign="top"><div class="p4">N/A</div></td> <td class="td6" valign="top"><div class="p4">Retaining all profit. Selling larger or heavier items, like furniture, locally. Larger cities, college towns or smaller cities with a lot of Craigslist activity.</div></td> </tr>
<tr style="background-color: #f8dc9a;"> <td class="td1" valign="top"><div class="p4">Virtual Yard Sale</div></td> <td class="td2" valign="top"><div class="p4">None</div></td> <td class="td3" valign="top"><div class="p4">High</div></td> <td class="td4" valign="top"><div class="p4">Medium</div></td> <td class="td5" valign="top"><div class="p4">N/A</div></td> <td class="td6" valign="top"><div class="p4">Folks comfortable with technology & blogging tools. Community-based selling of clothing, household items, furniture & books (etc). Turning a large household de-cluttering project into cash over time without fees or shipping hassles. College towns.</div></td> </tr>
</tbody> </table><br />
<div class="p1">The ratings above are based on my opinion of how each of these stack up relative to the others. The categories are:</div><div class="p2"><br />
</div><div class="p1"><b>Fees/Cost</b></div><div class="p1">Fees or costs associated with using a service. Shipping costs not included here as that's usually passed on to the buyer.</div><div class="p2"><br />
</div><div class="p1"><b>Complexity</b></div><div class="p1">"Hassle Factor". How difficult or how much time it takes to sell with this method. This could be a technical complexity or interpersonal-complexity...it all counts. </div><div class="p2"><br />
</div><div class="p1"><b>Reliability</b></div><div class="p1">Can you rely on buyers to pay you? The likelihood that you will be paid for your item once someone indicates they want it. Ranges from Amazon with the highest reliability, to Craigslist with the lowest due to no-shows etc.</div><div class="p2"><br />
</div><div class="p1"><b>Shipping</b></div><div class="p1">How complex and/or costly is shipping items? Part of what you pay for with the paid services is some nice automated shipping features such as estimated shipping costs, printing shipping labels and paying online.</div><div class="p2"><br />
</div><div class="p1"><b>Best for...</b></div><div class="p1">Each method has value, and I don't think I have a "favorite" or could rate one of these "best overall". This category is my opinion on what each method does best so you can decide what's important to you and give it a try.</div><br />
<b>Questions for you: Which are your favorite methods and why? Any other sites that you'd recommend in a Top 10? </b>Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07099173870125319819noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10993984.post-38580343036963213312011-04-02T17:32:00.000-06:002011-04-08T19:43:18.485-06:00March Cash FlowI was thinking it had been a really long time since I'd done one of these, let alone posted the results...and then I realized (after poking around in my archives) I'd never actually posted a monthly summary showing detail. So, in the name of radical transparency, I hereby "get naked" and expose my cash flow for March:<br />
<br />
<b>Cash Received - $2964</b><br />
<ul><li>$1052 in Garage Sale Revenue (Amazon, Ebay, AbundaTrade)</li>
<li>$240 in Services Revenue (Coaching, Bodywork, etc)</li>
<li>$500 in Personal Loan (paid for March rent)</li>
<li>$603 in Gift Money (Mom paid for my March auto loan)</li>
<li>$15 in Other Income (Referral bonuses, Surveys, etc)</li>
<li>$554 in Misc (Security Deposit refunded from prior apartment)</li>
</ul><b>Personal Expenses - $2099</b><br />
<ul><li>$989 in Auto (Loan, Insurance, Gas)</li>
<li>$12 credit in Internet</li>
<li>$65 in Mobile Phone</li>
<li>$155 in Groceries</li>
<li>$90 in Misc Cash Spending (Coffee, work breakfasts, etc)</li>
<li>$11 in Home</li>
<li>$103 in Misc (Computer repair)</li>
<li>$63 in Bank Fees</li>
<li>$635 Repay Personal Loan</li>
</ul><b>Business Expenses - $386</b><br />
<ul><li>$17 in Business Cards (accrued in January)</li>
<li>$95 in Business Other (eBook)</li>
<li>$222 in Courses (Deposit for a class I committed to a year ago)</li>
<li>$52 in Business Fees (YL Distributor Fee)</li>
</ul><br />
<br />
<b>Notes:</b><br />
I continue to sell off items I no longer want or need (this site IS Clutter2Cash, after all) and this was a good month. I found <a href="http://www.abundatrade.com/">AbundaTrade</a> and sold them every CD of mine that they'd accept and netted about $250 for doing so.<br />
<br />
People were incredibly generous with me this month, and I'm very grateful. I moved in with my girlfriend as of the 1st, and she loaned me March rent money. My mother paid my backlogged auto loan payment and then some. Friends treated me to meals when I was traveling in Boston for a class that was a year in the making...I am incredibly blessed.<br />
<br />
Auto expenses look high due to paying February, March and a $5 late fee in order to bring my account into good standing. Now I can register my car in New Mexico.<br />
<br />
My cash spending is made up of frequent $2 daily coffee runs and an average of a couple of $8 "work breakfasts" at a local cafe where I can get online and get business related work done and be out of the house. I also had a few (very few) misc expenses while traveling. I might want to look at making my own coffee, but right now I'm benefiting from my mini-routine as is.<br />
<br />
I had nearly $200 in unexpected expenses this month between a hard drive failure (no, I didn't have a backup...and yes, I know better) and some money transfer mistimings resulting in TWO $29 bank fees and an additional $5 bank fee. I found out this is a "courtesy pay" fee...my credit union charges me $29 essentially for non-sufficient funds, but covers overdrafts up to $400. They also charge $5 per day for each day my account has a negative balance. <b>Ouch.</b> I need to be more careful about scheduled payments and moving money in via PayPal and Amazon distributions...sometimes they are fast, but not always.<br />
<br />
I repaid another short term personal loan to my girlfriend who had loaned me February rent against my security deposit returned to me in the first few days of March. I had a dispute with my ex-landlady as I feel she illegally deducted from my deposit, and I haven't had success getting the tenant board to return my calls, so it "feels" like a loss of about $80.<br />
<br />
Business expenses could have been reigned in...I was committed to paying the $222 (which is a deposit, I still owe $666) since March of last year, but other than the business cards, the other expenses could have waited. I was disappointed in the eBook I purchased, and I signed up to become a Young Living Essential Oil distributor (through my bodywork business).<br />
<br />
<b>Summary</b><br />
On paper, I "gained" over $400...which feels good because I at least know I spent less than came in. However, my daily flow is such that I paid rent and utilities on the first, paid another $100 loan off, and will use the $150 or so remaining in my account to register my car. And my car loan payment is due Monday...and that's $441...I'm already "behind". So daily cash flow is still an issue. In April, I will focus on ramping up my service income (my main business) and will continue to clean out the corner of the living room via Ebay, Amazon, consignment and other brick and mortar venues. <br />
<br />
<b>Whether you are paying down debt or socking away savings...How did YOU do in March?</b>Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07099173870125319819noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10993984.post-57615364870466580642010-04-20T20:03:00.000-06:002010-04-20T20:03:16.877-06:00Four Years Later...Well, a lot has changed in four years. My long term relationship ended, I sold my house, left my job, and moved to New Mexico to study bodywork. I no longer track my net worth in the same way and though I have a lot less cash than when I last wrote, I feel more prosperous than ever. I'll be writing less about "personal finance" (though I'll still end up writing about my process and relationship with money) and more about the energy of prosperity.<br />
<br />
The blog is going through some growing pains as I edit templates and do nerdy stuff, stay tuned...Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07099173870125319819noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10993984.post-1147309578898013372006-05-10T18:51:00.000-06:002006-05-10T19:06:25.346-06:00UpdatetasticIt's May 10th, do you know what your networth is? Because I didn't. Yes that's right my monthly ritual of closing the books was behind schedule and I didnt even know how we did this month.<br /><br />I'd say April was a mixed bag financially. In looking at the balances I realized I had money just sitting in my checking account (this is most likely a result of not yet starting up my 401k) and I just transferred that over to my Roth IRA. So the good news is that my Roth IRA is way ahead of schedule (I'm throwing the net paycheck surplus at the Roth) and it's possible I will have that maxed out by mid-year.<br /><br />However, it seems I am about a month behind in my average monthly networth increases in terms of meeting my year end goal of $275k. Expenses are down a little bit and I am throwing money at the Roth first instead of evenly contributing to the Roth and 401k throughout the year (I have reasons, don't worry)<br /><br />My networth as of April 30th is: $227,147<br /><br /><div align="center"><script language="javascript" type="text/javascript" src="http://www.networthiq.com/api/badge.ashx?u=Clutter2Cash&h=150&w=160&c=FFFFFF"></script></div><br /><br />I accidentally entered April data in May and then I couldn't delete May so it looks like April to May is flat. But really I just enter my info on the last day of the month. Is that weird?<br /><br />I also noticed I am overdue for a re-allocation of my retirement funds. I re-allocated about 13 months ago and I believe I am overexposed in bonds for my investing target. My choices have done decently but I'm not comfortable with my current bond allocation.Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07099173870125319819noreply@blogger.com30tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10993984.post-1147122846836716022006-05-09T09:58:00.000-06:002006-05-09T10:01:59.193-06:00Festival of Frugality #22Well I've had less time to read blogs lately so I've been feeling a bit out of the loop and hosting this week's Festival of Frugality was like old home week and I learned of some new (to me) blogs to boot. I also learned several things from all the posts, such as: you can purchase coupons on ebay (I *told* you I've been out of the loop!), who sticks the sliver of soap on a new bar (check out Seattle Simplicity's post and the comments reveal all!) and which beer kit sounds like a good deal (oatmeal stout? I say BRING IT!). Without further blabbage I bring you all thirty-three post of the twenty-second Festival of Frugality:<br /><br /><hr /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Frugal Musings</span><br />~Dawn at Frugal for Life brings us <a href="http://frugalforlife.blogspot.com/2006/04/frugal-word-superfluous.html">The Frugal Word: Superfluous</a> A great word to learn and throw about to let people know you are living a frugal life.<br /><br />Amanda at <a href="http://youngandbroke.typepad.com">Young and Broke</a> considers <a href="http://youngandbroke.typepad.com/young_and_broke/2006/05/to_cab_or_not_t.html">To Cab or Not to Cab</a> when weighing personal safety vs. saving money<br /><br /><a href="http://seattlesimplicity.blogspot.com/">Seattle Simplicity</a> was <a href="http://seattlesimplicity.blogspot.com/2006/05/born-frugal.html">Born Frugal</a><br /><br />Richard K Miller presents <a href="http://www.firevalt.com/blog/2006/05/06/winning-on-the-margins/">Winning on the margins</a> posted at <a href="http://www.firevalt.com/blog">Firevalt Blog - Personal finance and entrepreneurship</a>.<br /><br />Meredith at <a href="http://likemerchantships.blogspot.com">Like Merchant Ships</a> ponders <a href="http://likemerchantships.blogspot.com/2006/05/frugal-dilemma.html">A Frugal Dilemma.</a> Do you think Meredith's husband was being stingy or sticking to principles?<br /><br /><hr /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Cooking, Eating and Groceries</span><br /><a href="http://thefamilyceo.blogspot.com/">The Family CEO</a> just <a href="http://thefamilyceo.blogspot.com/2006/04/spent-526-to-save-25.html">Spent $5.26 to save $25</a> and discovered coupons on eBay.<br /><br />Joanne at <a href="http://anunschoolinglife.blogspot.com/">A Day in Our Lives</a> explains <a href="http://anunschoolinglife.blogspot.com/2006/05/day-seventy-saving-at-grocery-store.html">How we save money at the grocery store</a><br /><br />jim at <a href="http://www.bargaineering.com/articles">Blueprint for Financial Prosperity</a> exlpains <a href="http://www.bargaineering.com/articles/brewing-your-own-good-beer-on-the-cheap.html">Brewing Your Own Good Beer on the Cheap</a> and that immediately went on my "to do" list!<br /><br />Penny Nickel at <a href="http://moneyandvalues.blogspot.com">Money and Values</a> has a cheap and easy alternative for homemade pizza crust in <a href="http://moneyandvalues.blogspot.com/2006/05/cheap-and-easy-pizza-at-home.html">Cheap and easy pizza at home</a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.grillmaestro.com">Grill Maestro</a> points out that just like buying a car you should <a href="http://www.grillmaestro.com/dont-buy-a-new-propane-tank-buy-used.htm">be buying a "used" propane tank</a> to save money<br /><br />supermom_in_ny of <a href="http://getting-out-of-debt.blogspot.com/">Getting Out of Debt</a> reminds us to take advantage of freebies in <a href="http://getting-out-of-debt.blogspot.com/2006/05/saving-money-on-monthly-expenses.html">Saving Money on Monthly Expenses: Freebies!</a><br /><br /><hr /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Around the house</span><br />Amy Allen Clark at <a href="http://www.momadvice.com/blog">The MotherLoad</a> brings around an oldie but goodie in <a href="http://www.momadvice.com/blog/2006/05/play-it-again-momma.htm">Play It Again, Momma!</a><br /><br /><a href="http://inchoaterandomabstractions.blogspot.com/">Inchoate Random Abstractions</a> presents several frugal and <a href="http://inchoaterandomabstractions.blogspot.com/2006/05/environmentally-friendly-cleaning-and.html">Environmentally Friendly Cleaning and Gardening Tips</a><br /><br />mbhunter at <a href="http://www.mightybargainhunter.com">Mighty Bargain Hunter</a> explains his <a href="http://www.mightybargainhunter.com/2006/05/04/de-junking/trackback">De-junking</a> plans<br /><br />Jeffrey Strain of <a href="http://www.pfadvice.com">Personal Finance Advice</a> reminds us all to <a href="http://www.pfadvice.com/2006/05/05/check-ceiling-fans-daily-financial-challenge/trackback">Check Ceiling Fans</a> to prepare for the summer heat and makes a pitch for ditching the AC<br /><br />Josh Cohen at <a href="http://www.multiplementality.com">Multiple Mentality</a> ponders bar vs. liquid in <a href="http://multiplementality.com/wordpress/index.php/archives/2006/05/04/905/">The Soap Bubble</a><br /><br /><br /><hr /><span style="font-weight: bold;">In the Wallet</span><br />Wenchypoo at <a href="http://www.wenchwisdom@blogspot.com">Frugal Wisdom from Wenchypoo's Warehouse</a> warns us all of <a href="http://wenchwisdom.blogspot.com/2006/05/aisle-of-deception.html">The Aisle of Deception</a> - coming soon to a store near you!<br /><br />Nick at <a href="http://www.punny.org/">Punny Money</a> guides us to <a href="http://www.punny.org/money/earn-even-more-cash-back-with-citi-cards-at-over-100-merchants/">Earn Even More Cash Back With Citi Cards at Over 100 Merchants</a>. iTunes Music Store? I had no idea!<br /><br />LAmoneyguy from <a href="http://itsjustmoney.blogs.com/its_just_money/">It's Just Money</a> asks <a href="http://itsjustmoney.blogs.com/its_just_money/2006/05/do_you_buy_the_.html">Do You Buy the Entertainment Book?</a><br /><br />Personal Finance Blogger teaches you to <a href="http://www.my-personal-finance-blog.com/2006/05/06/maximize-your-cash-back-earnings/">Maximize your cash back earnings</a> using resources like FatWallet at <a href="http://www.my-personal-finance-blog.com">My Personal Finance Blog</a>.<br /><br />frugal of <a href="http://www.1stmillionat33.com/">My 1st Million at 33</a> shares <a href="http://www.1stmillionat33.com/2006/05/my-wifes-shopping-tips/">his Wife's Shopping Tips</a><br /><br />Tynan at <a href="http://www.betterthanyourboyfriend.com">Better Than Your Boyfriend</a> explains how to get <a href="http://www.betterthanyourboyfriend.com/how-to-get-the-best-cell-phone-plan-in-all-the-land.htm">The Best Cell Phone Plan Ever</a> from Sprint<br /><br /><a href="http://www.financialreflections.com/">Financial Reflections</a> writes how thrift stores and some self-reliance saved about $200 in <a href="http://www.financialreflections.com/thrift/how-goodwill-saved-my-computer/">How Goodwill Saved My Computer</a><br /><br /><a href="http://carhacker.blogspot.com/">Carhacker</a> presents ever popular gas saving tips in: <a href="http://carhacker.blogspot.com/2006/05/save-gas-use-your-foot.html">Save gas Use your foot</a><br /><br /><br /><hr /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Looking Good & Special Occasions</span><br />Ricemutt at <a href="http://www.experiglot.com">Experiments in Finance with a Polyglot Twist</a> presents <a href="http://www.experiglot.com/2006/04/13/salon-training-nights-look-stylin-while-saving-money/">Salon training nights: look stylin' while saving money</a><br /><br />Rebecca Mielke at <a href="http://thespacebetweenmypeers.blogspot.com/">The Space Between My Peers</a> shares some <a href="http://thespacebetweenmypeers.blogspot.com/2006/05/frugal-mom-wardrobe-basics.html">Frugal Mom Wardrobe Basics</a><br /><br />Tricia of <a href="http://bloggingawaydebt.blogspot.com/">Blogging Away Debt</a> gives <a href="http://bloggingawaydebt.blogspot.com/2006/05/twelve-frugal-wedding-tips-from-my.html">Twelve Frugal Wedding Tips from My Wedding</a> and even I wanted to have a wedding. Ok, not really. But almost.<a href="http://bloggingawaydebt.blogspot.com"></a><br /><br />Lisa McGarry at <a href="http://www.familyoffive.co.uk/">Family Of Five</a> presents <a href="http://www.familyoffive.co.uk/2006/04/21/money-saving-tips-make-the-most-of-those-retail-sales/">Money Saving Tips: Make The Most Of Those Retail Sales!</a> as one way to save on gifts...and more<br /><br />muse at <a href="http://me-ander.blogspot.com/">me-ander</a> reminds us that some of the best things in life are free as she writes about swapping spa nights for basketball games in <a href="http://me-ander.blogspot.com/2006/05/relaxing-and-sleeping-well.html">Relaxing and sleeping well</a><br /><br /><hr /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Other</span><br /><a href="http://www.paulstips.com">Paul's Tips</a> presents <a href="http://www.paulstips.com/brainbox/pt/home.nsf/link/04052006-How-to-get-a-job-paying-more-than-100000-a-year">How to get a job paying more than $100,000 a year </a><br /><br />Big Cajun Man of <a href="http://canajunfinances.blogspot.com/">Canadian Financial Rants</a> rants about his government's budget in <a href="http://canajunfinances.blogspot.com/2006/05/budget-spring-2006-whats-in-it-for-me.html">Budget Spring 2006: What's in it for me</a>?<br /><br />F. D. Bryant III presents <a href="http://fdbryant3.efx2.com/view/36848/">Introducing the FairTax Plan</a> posted at <a href="http://fdbryant3.efx2.com/">A Geek's World</a><br /><br /><br /><hr />I also want to give a shout out and a whitegirl wave to those who used the comment form to say howdy!<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Next Week:</span> The festival is being hosted by my Boston homegirl Jane Dough at <a href="http://bostongalsopenwallet.blogspot.com/">Boston Gal's Open Wallet</a>Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07099173870125319819noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10993984.post-1146581593868296042006-05-02T08:07:00.000-06:002006-05-02T09:33:52.120-06:00Money Blogger Podcast InterviewDespite loving the overall idea of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Podcast">podcasts</a> and the subscription model <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Podcast#Other_uses">potential</a> they bring to the party, I admit to being slow in partaking of the bounty. I've just never been a huge "talk radio" fan and sometimes it's fainful to admit to my friends that I actually do not listen to NPR.<br /><br />However, I do have two podcast subscriptions that I feel are must haves: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battlestar_Galactica_%282004_television_series%29">Battlestar Galactica</a> and Scott's <a href="http://moneybloggerpodcast.blogspot.com/">Money Blogger Podcast</a>. Scott's podcasts put an even more personal face (er...voice) to the bloggers he interviews granting a peek behind the scenes of your favorite money blogs.<br /><br />I was honored when Scott asked me for an interview a little while back and I had great fun talking with him about personal finance, technology and sundry other topics. He is now through with performing his podcasty magic and has <a href="http://moneybloggerpodcast.blogspot.com/2006/05/episode-16-interview-with-caitlin-of.html">published the interview</a>. I hope I didn't ramble too much...I admit I was a little nervous!<br /><br /><ul><li>My <a href="http://moneybloggerpodcast.blogspot.com/2006/05/episode-16-interview-with-caitlin-of.html">Money Blogger Podcast interview</a></li><li><a href="http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?id=135703252&s=143441">Subscribe to Scott's podcast</a> via iTunes Music Store (opens iTunes)</li><li>Use <a href="http://webjay.org/playthispage?url=http%3A//moneybloggerpodcast.blogspot.com/">WebJay to listen to Scott's interviews</a> through a variety of players<br /></li><li><a href="http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?id=73329453&s=143441">Subscribe to the Battlestar Galactica</a> commentary via iTMS (opens iTunes)<br /></li></ul> <div class="tags">Tags:<ul><li><a href="http://del.icio.us/Clutter2Cash/Clutter2Cash+misc" rel="tag">misc</a></li> <li><a href="http://del.icio.us/Clutter2Cash/Clutter2Cash+aboutmehttp://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gif" rel="tag">aboutmehttp://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gif</a></li> </ul></div>Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07099173870125319819noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10993984.post-1146152678911629422006-04-27T08:47:00.000-06:002006-04-27T09:44:39.006-06:00Announcing Queercents<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.queercents.com/"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px;" src="http://www.queercents.com/queercents_logoC.gif" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">We're here, we're queer, and we're not going shopping without coupons</span><br /></div><br />Queercents is coming out of the closet today as a new personal finance blog serving the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community. The site features writings from three established money bloggers (Dawn of <a href="http://frugalforlife.blogspot.com/">FrugalForLife</a>, Nina of <a href="http://sittingprettyfinancially.blogspot.com/">Sitting Pretty</a> and yours truly) and will aggregate financial resources and content with particular relevance to the LGBT community.<br /><br />I will certainly continue to post about my own personal experiences with finances here on Clutter2Cash and now with the launch behind us I can get back to updating all you curious folk about my money sitch (it's not all rosy, I'll tell ya!) and attempting to be helpful to anyone with a curiousity about personal finance :)<br /><br />Everyone is welcome at <a href="http://www.queercents.com">Queercents</a>, so please come take a look around and feel free to give us <span style="font-weight: bold;">your</span> 2 cents on the new site.Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07099173870125319819noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10993984.post-1145564983768319232006-04-20T14:28:00.000-06:002006-04-20T14:29:43.796-06:00I'd Give This Guy Money<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://home.nc.rr.com/edeyo/ninjas_killed.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px;" src="http://home.nc.rr.com/edeyo/ninjas_killed.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><div class="tags">Tags:<ul><li><a href="http://del.icio.us/Clutter2Cash/Clutter2Cash+humor" rel="tag">humor</a></li> </ul></div>Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07099173870125319819noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10993984.post-1145484714495318392006-04-19T16:00:00.000-06:002006-04-19T16:11:54.530-06:00Roth UpdateSince I have yet to re-activate my 401k (it's a long story) I have decided that until I do I will try to max out my Roth as soon as possible so I can just check that off for the year and move on to other savings (like getting back to the 401k)<br /><br />Basically my company's financials are not healthy right now and the prospects are iffy. It really could go either way. So I am prioritizing my Roth savings right now for a couple of reasons:<br /><ol><li>If the company folds and I absolutely need to, I can access money I've contributed to my Roth (but not any earnings) without penalty. So my Roth is a dire-emergency fund in a manner of speaking. I cannot access 401(k) savings in this way, I would have to borrow it from myself which is harder to do if you are unemployed</li><li>I'd rather get my Roth maximized and full invested ASAP instead of seeing my 401(k) money used as an unofficial "float" to cover cash flow problems. Sometimes my money would hit my account 6 weeks after my payday so that's 6 weeks of lost investing time.<br /></li></ol>To this end, I have added $1200 to my Roth this month instead of the predicted $400 and therefore I am already at 40% of my goal.<br /><br />If the company's financials make a comeback I will try my hand at "power-saving" so as to not lose the pre-tax opportunity that the 401(k) gives me.<br /><br /><br /><div class="tags">Tags:<ul><li><a href="http://del.icio.us/Clutter2Cash/Clutter2Cash+savings" rel="tag">savings</a></li> <li><a href="http://del.icio.us/Clutter2Cash/Clutter2Cash+retirement" rel="tag">retirement</a></li> <li><a href="http://del.icio.us/Clutter2Cash/Clutter2Cash+roth" rel="tag">roth</a></li> </ul></div>Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07099173870125319819noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10993984.post-1144810081834263722006-04-11T20:40:00.000-06:002006-04-11T20:50:40.270-06:00March Networth UpdateI wouldn't blame you for thinking I took our 10k and jetted off to the Caymans never to blog again, but alas that isn't the case. I was away on vacation for about a week and a half and before I could get settled into my routine again, things got a little busy with some work obligations and I'm still in the process of digging myself out. Hence the slow updates, but I intend to find my groove (definitely not the way Stella handled it) and let you know what's been going on in my wallet.<br /><br />I was finally able to complete my NetworthIQ update for the month of March and I closed out at $223,847<br /><div align="center"><br /><script language="javascript" type="text/javascript" src="http://www.networthiq.com/api/badge.ashx?u=Clutter2Cash&h=150&w=160&c=FFFFFF"></script><br /></div><br />This is a bit lower than my average target to meet my year end goal. I don't count the money I have in checking because I keep that to a minimum and it's usually all allocated for bills etc. However due to when I went on vacation, I think I'm behind in moving some money to savings so that might reflect the dip. I *hope* it does...we'll see at the end of this month!Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07099173870125319819noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10993984.post-1142974956219383882006-03-21T13:18:00.000-07:002006-03-21T14:02:36.366-07:00Emergency Fund: Ding!Turns out I outsmarted myself at tax return time by setting up my refund to be direct deposited straight into our emergency fund at HSBC. My refund was deposited on Friday which brought our total to $9950 and change. I couldn't bear to see us $50 away from our goal, but cash flow in the checking account was too tight for me to fix that. Seriously.<br /><br />It hit me last night...the reason cash feels so tight is that my company is "borrowing" about $1600 from me (un-reimbursed business expenses...the bulk of that going back to the first week of December) and I had begun a balance shuffling process to consolidate those expenses on one low rate card that I had yet to complete. When the dust settled from the rest of moving money around, the checking account once again looked healthy. My minimum payments (out of pocket...ugh) will be smaller and the interest that my company will have to reimburse will be a smaller amount. Win-win I suppose.<br /><br />But the net effect is that I was able to transfer in the final $50 so that we have officially met our emergency fund goal, and technically ahead of schedule. w00t!<br /><br />But honestly we are feeling some savings fatigue so I better take <a href="http://singlemomandmoney.blogspot.com">Singlema</a>'s advice and celebrate by spending a *little* so we don't feel so pinched. So we're going to splurge a bit while on vacation in San Francisco. Nothing too crazy mind you...just maybe a meal or two to write home about. Oh, and we thought we might pick up the stuff we need to start playing <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dance_Dance_Revolution" title="Dance Dance Revolution">DDR</a>. You know...for the exercise. Ahem.<br /><br />Now we have to decide where to park that money....<br /><br /><div class="tags">Tags:<ul><li><a href="http://del.icio.us/Clutter2Cash/Clutter2Cash+savings" rel="tag">savings</a></li> </ul></div>Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07099173870125319819noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10993984.post-1142964271473262642006-03-21T10:46:00.000-07:002006-03-21T11:04:31.506-07:00Google Finance Launches BetaTravelgnome alerted me to the <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2006/TECH/internet/03/21/google.finance.reut/index.html">news</a> that google has finally launched a beta of their financial news service, <a href="http://finance.google.com">Google Finance</a>. They certainly have a long way to go to catch up to <a href="http://finance.yahoo.com/">Yahoo! Finance</a>, but I like the looks of where they're going.<br /><br />Right now, their initial offerings seem aimed at investors in research mode and not much else. But the "web 2.0"-ness of the integrated research tools are impressive to me as a n00b investor. <br /><br />The chart of stock prices is particularly slick looking and my favorite feature of this view is that recent news items are pegged to the stock price so you can see the impact (if there is one). This doesn't seem to appear on all stocks (yet?) ... I didn't see the news items represented on the price chart for CompuCredit (<a href="http://finance.google.com/finance?q=ccrt">CCRT</a>), but it was there for both google (<a href="http://finance.google.com/finance?q=goog">GOOG</a>) and Coca-Cola (<a href="http://finance.google.com/finance?q=ko">KO</a>). <br /><br />Another feature that is technically "cool" is that when you hover over each person in management you might get a picture. I don't really think that's of value to the everyday investor, but it *is* pretty neat in a geeky-integration-of-data way.<br /><br />After you have completed a few stock searches, the main page is updates with your recent searches and news that is relevant to those ticker symbols. The main page is pretty sparse and useless until this change...and even then it's not terribly exciting.<br /><br />The portfolio tool is sort of sad, but I'm glad they launched at least enough of it to enable data entry. At this point you can enter the symbol, cost, and number of shares and the portfolio will show you all the totals. I can't wait to see what they do with this though, it is what I am most excited about. Google, get yer graph on and make that portfolio sexxxxxy!<br /><br />I'm only just beginning to learn about investing so that has colored my opinions. More than anything I am excited to see how they improve the overall service, but I'm glad they got it out the door so we can all take a peek.<br /><div class="tags">Tags:<ul><li><a href="http://del.icio.us/Clutter2Cash/Clutter2Cash+finance" rel="tag">finance</a></li> <li><a href="http://del.icio.us/Clutter2Cash/Clutter2Cash+tools" rel="tag">tools</a></li> </ul></div>Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07099173870125319819noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10993984.post-1142471847447787922006-03-15T16:25:00.000-07:002006-03-15T18:21:43.896-07:00Save-O-Meter UpdatesThe emergency fund got a sexy bump today of $1000, courtesy of LaLa, bringing us to 88% of our goal. With the <a href="http://clutter2cash.blogspot.com/2006/03/taxman-comethwith-good-news.html">tax refund</a> due in a couple of days I think we may be able to meet this goal this quarter if we stretch a bit. I suppose we should start making a specific plan of where to park this money once the promo rates start expiring for online savings accounts. We want to keep it fairly liquid so we'll be considering options like: online savings, Fidelity Mass Muni fund, CD ladder, & short term t-bill ladder. Stay tuned.<br /><br />It was also the mid-month payday today and that's when I make Roth contributions. I officially started my 2006 Roth today with a $400 contribution. My plan is to contribute $400 each month so that by mid-December I'll reach the maximum contribution of $4000. I've made a new 2006 Roth-O-Meter to monitor my progress meeting that goal.<br /><br />With the emergency fund goal in sight and the Roth chugging at a solid pace, it's time to think about <a href="http://clutter2cash.blogspot.com/2005/12/cancelled-my-401k-contribution.html">re-instating my 401(k)</a> contributions. I feel ready to do this in time for the end of month payday, but the financial condition of my company gives me pause. Even when the cash was actually flowing they were pretty pokey about moving money into my account -- sometimes brushing up against (past?) the legal time limit. So...it's complicated. <div class="tags">Tags:<ul><li><a href="http://del.icio.us/Clutter2Cash/Clutter2Cash+savings" rel="tag">savings</a></li> </ul></div>Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07099173870125319819noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10993984.post-1142372998640899712006-03-14T14:23:00.000-07:002006-03-14T14:51:29.573-07:00Blogger Locked Me OutAfter a full week of just not having the time to post due to a work commitment, I came to find that my blog had been "locked" by robots on suspicion that I was a "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Splog">spam blog</a>" (aka "splog"). Regardless of how you feel about my writing or grammar ;) my content is indeed created by a human (and not robots), my links don't all point to the same site, and I'm really not pulling in adsense worth mentioning at all.<br /><br />So I gotta wonder why my site got flagged. Because they don't tell you why it got flagged. Nor do they tell you how long the queue to get whitelisted is, or where you are in it. They just tell you that a human has to review your site and that it usually takes 24 hours. My site took more than 48hrs but some people have had to wait longer, and some have even lost their entire site in the process.<br /><br />I'm just flummoxed. I applaud efforts to fight spam but this process is broken. Many real bloggers are having their blogs locked down and the only option is to submit to be reviewed and then wait. The review process clearly takes too long (due to an uneccessarily long queue of incorrently flagged blogs perhaps?) and the robots apparently aren't very smart. And they hate freedom.<br /><br />I suppose the good news is that I no longer have to type a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Captcha">captcha</a> every time I post. I thought Blogger had turned on some blogger-wide anti-splog mechanism and it turns out that is turned on in blogs that are initially suspected of splogging. And theoretically there is a way to get whitelisted at that point, but I suppose typing in gobs of pull-your-hair-out-annoying captchas correctly (and quite a few incorrectly...is that two v's or a w? a g or a q? aaaargh!!!) over the past couple of months was not enough to prove I'm human.<br /><br />I couldn't even update my template to somehow alert the 3 people who might care what was going on. Anyway, I'm back ... and woefully behind so i better get to it... <div class="tags">Tags:<ul><li><a href="http://del.icio.us/Clutter2Cash/Clutter2Cash+blogging" rel="tag">blogging</a></li> <li><a href="http://del.icio.us/Clutter2Cash/Clutter2Cash+misc" rel="tag">misc</a></li> </ul></div>Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07099173870125319819noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10993984.post-1142199432800020172006-03-12T14:15:00.000-07:002006-03-14T14:22:55.700-07:00Media MailIf you are sending books or other media through the USPS, <span style="font-weight: bold;">media mail</span> can be an inexpensive shipping option, but there are restrictions on the service that aren't always obvious. Jack at the WROX P.O. gave us the lowdown on Media Mail when we asked why it wasn't available via the self-serve kiosk in the lobby (causing us to endure a 20 minute wait in line).<br /><br />Media mail can be used to send *only* appropriate media (so don't mix your packages...one book in a box of stuff doesn't make the package media mail eligible) and what surprised me was that media that contains advertising is NOT eligible for media mail. This means you cannot send magazines via media mail (and if you add magazines to a package with books...no media mail!) which was news to me.<br /><br />Sure enough the USPS website does state the no-advertising restriction:<br /><blockquote style="font-style: italic;">[Content:] Generally used for books (at least eight pages), film (16 mm or narrower), printed music, printed test materials, video and sound recordings, playscripts, printed educational charts, loose-leaf pages and binders consisting of medical information, and computer-readable media. Sound recordings may include incidental announcements of recordings and guides or scripts prepared solely for use with such recordings. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Books may contain no advertising other than incidental announcements of other books</span>. </blockquote>[emphasis mine]<br /><br />The media mail stamp now contains a notice that media mail is subject to inspection so they can enforce these restrictions. Which makes a certain amount of sense, but the <a href="http://www.stopbuyingcrap.com/2006/03/08/usps-sorry-we-mauled-your-mail/">bears are really out of control lately</a>.Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07099173870125319819noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10993984.post-1141607025795947612006-03-05T17:06:00.000-07:002006-03-05T18:03:46.000-07:00The Taxman Cometh...With Good NewsI started doing my taxes on January 31st and only just finished them tonight (whew!). I had started by entering my data into TurboTax Online so I could assure myself I wouldn't owe. But after doing a <a href="http://clutter2cash.blogspot.com/2006/01/tax-filing-options-mini-roundup.html">price comparison of several tax filing services</a>, I chose a cheapie cheap mccheapster option to give it a whirl. Well, <a href="http://clutter2cash.blogspot.com/2006/02/esmarttax-review-dont-bother.html">eSmartTax left me high and dry</a> unable to serve up their own pages even in early February (and I absolutely hated their interface), so I chose to go the lazy route and finish what I had entered into TurboTax Deluxe.<br /><br />All I had left was to enter in all our non-cash donations to hopefully beef up my $500+ refund. I had no idea we had donated so much stuff in 2005! We made 8 donation trips last year and according to <a href="http://www.itsdeductibleonline.com/">ItsDeductible!</a> donated goods worth $1881 (we always used to undervalue goods, now I make sure to use ItsDeductible). <br /><br />Putting in the detail on our non-cash donations basically doubled my refund and I'm now <span style="font-weight: bold;">expecting a federal refund of a little over $1100</span>! I chose to e-file in hopes of getting that money via direct deposit very quickly. I entered my HSBCDirect account so it heads right into an interest bearing account, but I'll have to make a decision about whether to use it for the emergency fund or jump starting my 2006 Roth (you know how I love to get my Roth-O-Meter on).<br /><br />Oh! And right before I paid TurboTax, I found out that as a <a href="http://personal.fidelity.com/planning/tax/">Fidelity customer I could get $10 off the federal preparation fee</a>. So my total tax preparation costs were $34.90 total which wasn't too bad. (I had to log in via the Fidelity link a few times before the right price registered).<br /><br />Unfortunately I do owe state taxes but I won't have to pay that $297 until April. I know your heart bleeds for me ;)<br /><br /><br /><div class="tags">Tags:<ul><li><a href="http://del.icio.us/Clutter2Cash/Clutter2Cash+taxes" rel="tag">taxes</a></li> <li><a href="http://del.icio.us/Clutter2Cash/Clutter2Cash+saving" rel="tag">saving</a></li> </ul></div>Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07099173870125319819noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10993984.post-1141524134121535492006-03-04T17:31:00.000-07:002006-03-04T19:02:41.853-07:00Our Credit Card Debt StoryDebt Hater recently asked me how I paid down my credit card debt so quickly. First let me correct what I stated in that post about how much debt got paid off when. At the end of 2004 we had over $11,000 in credit card debt...most of it had been aquired in the preceding 3 months. By March I had it paid off, but I added $3000 in order to fund a Roth. This took another 3 months or so to pay off (at a very low promotional interest rate) so the net effect was paying off $14,000 *total* in about six months.<br /><br />Clearly that's not typical and I am no saving superhuman so let me explain the circumstances that led to the quick debt paydown and payoff.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Backstory</span><br />I won't blather on about the two preceding "lean" years that led up to 2004 but let's just say that we were used to carrying credit card debt. We always had some lurking around. For example, the year I was unemployed and LaLa was a shuttle van driver (here is her illustration of <a href="http://littlebean.typepad.com/.shared/image.html?/photos/uncategorized/shuttlebitch_594x500.gif">what she had to wear</a> that winter) we methodically paid off an $8000 credit card bill (the roof was leaking...what could we do?) only to realize we'd gone about $8000 in debt on other cards in the meantime. Sigh. I landed a well paying job at the tail end of 2003 and 2004 was mostly spent reducing our credit card debt and apparently buying all the stuff we couldn't afford for a while. We were about a month or two away from paying off our final $1500 credit card balance in the summer when we reversed directions.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Debt Spiral</span><br />We did purchase some things we truly needed and several things that while pricey I do not regret buying...but clearly spending was out of hand for a few months (mattress, iMac, Christmas presents...and on). To this day I'm not sure what caused the perfect storm, but maybe someday I'll go Quicken-diving and figure it out. So, December 2004 and credit card balances totaling over $11k ... and no savings other than retirement.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Bonus</span><br />While I didn't get the large cash bonus I had somehow convinced myself was coming at the end of the year...I did still net about $4,000 (after taxes etc) as a bonus and within a week or so I put it towards the credit cards. All of it. We really curtailed credit card spending so we wouldn't be spending what we were paying down elsewhere.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Tax Refund</span><br />I did my taxes in late February expecting a modest refund. When done, I realized I was due a refund of over $6000. While I was thrilled to have that sort of windfall coming our way at a time we were so committed to paying down debt...I was beyond irritated with myself for loaning Uncle Sam $500 a month. I had neglected to adjust my W-4 in January 2004 after aggressively paying taxes in Q4 of 2003 to help pay off unemployment income tax I had not had deducted. As soon as I received my refund in March I put it all toward the remaining credit card debt. And I promptly fixed my paycheck so I had $500 extra each month to assist my savings goals.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Last $3000</span><br />With our credit card debt all but payed off in March I was loathe to take on more debt, but I saw an opportunity to fund a 2004 Roth with $3000 borrowed at 1.9% using a promotional offer before the April 15th deadline. We paid our daily use card off every month at this point and I would pay down the $3000 with a large portion of my 2nd paycheck each month. Even so this amount took longer to pay off than I had originally intended because we had some work done on the house (and I still had no savings!)<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Debt into Savings</span><br />Those large unexpected windfalls allowed me to pay down my existing credit card debt very quickly. You might think that was lucky, but if we hadn't truly committed to paying it off we probably would have spent that $10k on pimping LaLa's '78 pickup or some other dumb thing. We had slowed the more radical spending in the beginning of the year but had not changed our monthly spending drastically.<br /><br />But when my net takehome was cut by $800 a month starting in July we had even less to spend each month because we were now...wait for it....SAVING! I was putting at least $500 a month into my 2005 Roth IRA to try to meet the maximum by the 4/2006 deadline. And we were trying to start an emergency fund of 3 months expenses in a liquid account. So we really did have to try to cut spending so we could continue to pay off our credit card balance each month AND continue to make our savings goals.<br /><br />Even though my story probably looks like I had it easy because I was able to pay it all off in a very short time, I think the principles are the same:<br /><ol><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">Stop Digging a Cash Hole</span> -- do whatever you need to do to stop taking on more debt. Don't use your cards, stop buying stuff you can't afford...whatever! You can't hit a moving target and you'll need to know the total of what you need to pay down.</li><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">Make a Plan</span> -- use the <a href="http://www.mdmproofing.com/iym/ramsey_debt_snowball.shtml">debt snowball</a>, <a href="http://www.mdmproofing.com/iym/mary_hunt_debt_plan.shtml">RDRP</a>, <a href="http://www.mdmproofing.com/iym/babysteps.shtml">baby steps</a>...whatever works for you, just make a plan and start doing it.</li><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">Use Windfalls to Pay Faster</span> -- tax refunds, found money, sign-up bonuses, part-time income...use any unexpected inflows to pay off the debt even faster. You don't even miss it.</li><li><span style="font-weight: bold;">When the Debt is Gone</span> -- save, save, save and have a fine time doing it too.</li></ol><br />At least that's what I think. And of course I'm no expert :) <div class="tags">Tags:<ul><li><a href="http://del.icio.us/Clutter2Cash/Clutter2Cash+credit" rel="tag">credit</a></li> <li><a href="http://del.icio.us/Clutter2Cash/Clutter2Cash+debt" rel="tag">debt</a></li> </ul></div>Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07099173870125319819noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10993984.post-1141355062189939592006-03-02T19:54:00.000-07:002006-03-02T20:05:18.170-07:00February Networth UpdateThings have been nuts all week. We went to VT for Mardi Gras (ha!), we had family visiting early in the week, drinks with friends yesterday, and I've been in a training class all week 9-5 (the nerve! LOL). I've barely had time to survey the finances but I think I've eked out a fairly accurate networth update for February.<br /><br />I've updated the Networth-O-Meter and I'm happy to say that so far we are still on target for our year end goal. Networth increase was technically 14.8% but I wanted to turn that text white so I rounded to 15% for the sake of readability (it's only $100 difference anyway...)<br /><br />I love having a reassuring picture of a line trending upwards whenever I'm feeling overwhelmed. Here's the cute little graph provided by <a href="http://www.networthiq.com">NetworthIQ</a>:<br /><div align="center"><br /><script language="javascript" type="text/javascript" src="http://www.networthiq.com/api/badge.ashx?u=Clutter2Cash&h=150&w=160&c=FFFFFF"></script><br /></div>Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07099173870125319819noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10993984.post-1141351540846900702006-03-02T19:05:00.000-07:002006-03-02T19:05:41.173-07:00Earned $100 on Monday Night...and I didn't even have to stand on a street corner! Ok that was tasteless, but I earned $100 on Monday for joining a focus group - my first - for two hours. I am quite fond of the company that was using the focus group and apparently I am also very opinionated ;)<br /><br />One of the ironies is that the company is in financial services and there were a lot of women in the group. All the women seemed bright and well educated and yet were very ambivalent about money and personal finance. They admitted to not knowing a lot, not being that interested and some even expressed guilt for those feelings. Interestingly they did all seem to be *more* interested by the end of the session, but I do wonder if that will last.<br /><br />It really seemed that the women in the room just didn't know where to start. Articles on stocks and funds and PEG ratios OH MY! just didn't light the fire - which I totally understand. Some days it seems like Financial Services are from Mars and women are from Venus or something. I think more and more women are starting to realize they need a basic understanding of personal finance and yet don't always know where to start. Yet, financial services seem to have a history of catering to the already wealthy. I am interested to see how financial services companies craft products and marketing towards a burgeoning female market. And even more importantly I am eager to see women claim their financial power and dive in.<br /><br />I don't have any answers, I just think that for the most part women have a different "relationship" to money. I have been reading about this in books such as Secrets of Six-Figure Women and Money, A Memoir and then it was right there in the room on Monday night.<br /><br />Ladies, start your engines.Caitlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07099173870125319819noreply@blogger.com3